I love to cook everything in one pan, and with as little cleanup as possible. I also enjoy the art of making homemade bread, which is the the exact opposite, in terms of the aftermath I'll be left to deal with.
 One thing that my family loves to devour is *whatever we're having* baked into a bread.


Today I am going to share with you this Jess-ipe, which I haven't officially named yet, but I will tell you exactly how I make it.

You will need the following:

1 pound of cooked and shredded chicken
1/2 cup chopped broccoli(or more if you like that nasty crap, I chop it up enough that I'm not gagging, and so that my kids we don't know we're eating vegetables  ::shudder::)
chopped onion, fresh minced garlic, chopped cilantro1 cup Velveeta, cubed
salt/pepper to taste

You start with your basic yeast dough. If you'd like to make your very own yeast dough click here for a recipe. If not, 1 or 2 cans of Pillsbury pizza crust dough will work, depending on the size of your family. I have 4 children, ages 12 and under, and a husband, whom all have the appetites of 17 year old boys.
Lightly flour a surface, and roll your dough out into a rectangle. In the center of the dough, layer the chicken, the nasty broccoli, onion, garlic, cilantro, salt & pepper. (Make sure to leave space all the way around for tucking the dough under, that way dinner isn't oozing out of the bread and all over the oven that I'm sure you all keep sparkly clean) Top with the Velveeta cubes, and roll the dough up, stromboli style.
Bake at 350 until the crust is browning. Butter the top, and place back into the oven for a few minutes.
I'd say that you should let it cool a few minutes first before serving, (AND YOU SHOULD!!) but that never happens here. When I pull food out of the oven, they start circling the kitchen like a pack of wolves.
ENJOY!

How to make homemade yeast dough.

Homemade Yeast Dough

Yes, YOU can do it too!

To make your home smell like a bakery, you will need to follow these instructions:

Get:
1 large bowl

2 1/4 cups hot water(110 degrees according to the recipes, but I just turn the faucet to HOT)
2 1/4 tsp or 1 pack of yeast.
3 tbsp sugar

Place those 3 ingredients into your large mixing bowl, and walk away for 15 minutes.
When you come back, you should see that the sugar has fed the yeast, and it will look like this------------------------------>

It's pretty cool how yeast works. Its too scientific for me to get into right now, so click the link if you like to learn new things.




Next you will need:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons salt
3 cups flour(Plus up to 3 1/2 more cups in a little bit)
Mix this up with your hand, or a mixer. It will be very sticky, but should be mixed well. Add in 1 more cup of flour at a time, until it forms a soft dough. (If the dough feels tough, add a tablespoon of water. If it still feels sticky, add a couple tablespoons of flour.)

Now for the kneading.
Watch this video.  Kneading is important!!!!!! Set a timer for 6 minutes, and don't stop.

When you are done with that, you need to clean out your bowl, make sure that it is dry, and then grease the inside of your bowl with Crisco or vegetable oil. This step will prevent your dough from sticking to the bowl, and also from drying out during the "proofing" time.

I use the term "proofing" because that is what we called it at my very first job, where I was an assistant in the Winn Dixie bakery. Dang, I miss those rose-colored smocks that we were required to wear!!!
Good old Winn Dixie.


Now take that beautiful ball of yeast dough that you've created, and drop it into your bowl. Heat your oven to 200 degrees for 5 minutes, then turn it off. Put the bowl(covered with a cheesecloth or towel) in the oven, and shut the door.
You have 1 1/2 hours to let the dough rise. How will you spend your time?

I'm likely to be found writing my memoirs playing on Facebook.

When you pull the bowl out of your lukewarm oven, the dough should be doubled in size. If it is not, I'm sorry, I remember the very first time I tried to make bread, it didn't work.
If your dough is doubled, set the bowl on the counter top and get ready. I want you to make a fist. A fist like you're about to punch someone. Don't even act like you've never in your life wanted to punch someone at least once. Take your fist, hold it up & say "I'm your Huckleberry", and blast it right into the center of the dough.

Now is time to get creative. What will you make with this bread dough??

Pizza crust, a loaf of bread, bread bowls for soup, cinnamon rolls, are you drooling yet?... the sky is the limit.
:)

General rule of thumb for baking bread, 350-375 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, or until golden brown.